HomeMy WebLinkAboutJuneteenth CelebrationContact: Debbie Townsend, Communications Coordinator
Phone 952-826-0346 • dtownsend@EdinaMN.gov • EdinaMN.gov
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Celebrate Juneteenth at Centennial Lakes Park
Edina, Minn., June 7, 2024 – This year’s Juneteenth celebration will feature two music acts, a live reading from a children’s book author, book giveaways and a special dessert vendor
just for the event.
The Juneteenth Community Celebration runs 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, June 19, at Maetzold Amphitheater at Centennial Lakes Park, 7499 France Ave. S. Admission and parking are free.
New this year is children’s author Isaiah Allen, who will read his book titled A Smile. Illustrated by Mel Darmawan, A Smile follows a young boy who discovers the transformative power
of a smile. Free copies of the book will be given away to children in attendance, courtesy of Friends of the Edina Library.
For older readers, copies of Annette Gordon-Reed’s On Juneteenth, a New York Times bestseller, will be handed out. Gordon-Reed won the 2009 Pulitzer Prize in History for The Hemingses
of Monticello: An American Family. The Texas native provides a historian’s view of America’s long road to Juneteenth and the integral role Blacks have had in Texas’ history. Juneteenth
evolved from June 19, 1865, when Union Army troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, and announced that enslaved Black people in the state were free, more than two years after the Emancipation
Proclamation.
Two musical acts return this year. Carolyne Naomi, who blends influences from soul and R&B to reggae and gospel, will open the evening’s entertainment. Smash Jazz, a trio that incorporates
jazz, R&B, pop and other genres, will be the closing act.
Lutunji’s Palate will be on hand, bringing a few fan-favorite, Southern-inspired desserts. Make sure to arrive at the start of the event to hear Lutunji tell her own inspirational story.
The event also includes art activities for children and a special speaker, City Council Member James Pierce.
For more information, follow the City of Edina’s Juneteenth Facebook event or visit CentennialLakesPark.com.
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